The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies - First Impressions

Yesterday, I was fortunate enough to snag tickets to what was, more than likely, a once in a lifetime experience: The Hobbit Marathon in IMAX, 3D and HFR (High Frame Rate).  The marathon culminated in The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, which will open in theaters everywhere this weekend.   First of all, in the interests of keeping on topic and discussing the film itself, I will save my remarks on the HFR (44 frames per second) and the pros/cons of a marathon for follow-up posts.

 As the capstone bridging the gap between The Lord of the Rings and the first two installments of The Hobbit trilogy, this film is tasked with the responsibility to wrap-up its predecessors and set-up the films to follow. Overall, I would say that it does a decent job of both.  While I won't be doing a full-review at this time, so as not to spoil it for those who haven't seen it yet (probably most of you), I will give you my first impressions to help you decide if it's a film that you want to check out.

The Battle of the Five Armies follows Bilbo and his dwarf companions as they strive to defend their newly acquired treasure from the armies of elves, orcs, and men that all feel they have a claim to it.

In terms of the storytelling, I enjoyed how despite the massive armies from various races, this film is uniquely based around a series of personal, individual conflicts.  Rather than just watching nameless soldiers battle, Peter Jackson raises the stakes for the audience by putting our protagonists in suspenseful, near constant conflicts (sometimes against each other).

As is the case with The Return of the King, the tone of the film is much more serious, with only occasional humor sprinkled in here and there.  This is to be expected given that the scope of the conflicts and inherent danger are substantially greater.  What the film does quite well, in my opinion, is occasionally step away from the madness of war to explore deeper subject matter, such as the flawed humanity of its characters.  Most of these moments take place as we watch individuals succumb to and overcome their humanity. You can expect several heart wrenching scenes, as well as some heart warming ones.

While I would argue that this is the most violent Tolkien film to date, with long sequences of intense action, the absence of gore keeps it in the realm of a PG-13 film. I would definitely recommend being wary of any child under 13 seeing the film though, as some moments can be frightening/disturbing for younger (and older) viewers. Lastly, at least as an initial impression, I feel that some of the action sequences are a bit too lengthy, such that other elements of the story are not properly developed.

In short, if you like intense, large-scale action movies with some deeper storytelling elements, you'll probably like The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies.  While I won't say that I left the theater completely blown away, I certainly enjoyed the film and, coming in at almost 1 hour shorter than The Return of the King, it's a substantially smaller investment of time!  Let me know if you see the film and what you think of it.

It was the Best of Times, It was the Worst of Times

To those of you who know me best, you'll realize how ECSTATIC I was to receive this email from a trusted pre-screening ticket provider this evening.  

In my childish glee, I thought to myself, "I'll wait until I get home to a desktop where I can print the tickets and be sure that I don't have any problems."  Much to my dismay, by the time I got home and clicked on the "Claim My Passes" button (a mere 15 minutes after receiving the email), I was redirected to another webpage...

...like a Morgul blade to my movie-loving, Hobbit-watching, ring-bearing heart, I read those fateful words, "Sorry, Event Full."  

It is difficult for me to express how much I wanted to see this pre-screening a full 2 WEEKS prior to premiere of the film! How exciting, unique and fantastic an opportunity that would have been!  I'm sure you can understand. But alas, I missed it.  Like Frodo before me, I am led to say, "I wish it need not have happened in my time." In hindsight, I didn't even receive the push notification from gofobo to my phone until 45 minutes after the screening was announced so I probably missed it anyway - such is life.  Oh well, at least I can take solace in seeing The Hobbit Movie Marathon in IMAX/3D/48 FPS in a few weeks! Be sure to keep your eyes peeled for my review of The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies prior to opening weekend!

Have any of you ever been able to attend a pre-screening of a film?  What websites/ticket masters do you use to get your tickets?  

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies - Full Trailer Review

Being an avid fan of Middle-earth, the Hobbit and all things Tolkien, I enjoyed this trailer immensely but I argue that even a non-Hobbit fan will be engaged by its intensity, emotion and epic scope! Check it out below: 

First Impressions

• It appears that Thorin, the noble and selfless dwarf king, has enemies on all sides, including: 

• Bard the Bowman - This unofficial leader of the people of Laketown argued against the quest to reclaim the Lonely Mountain in The Desolation of Smaug for fear that it would bring fiery retribution against his town - from the looks of things, he was right.  In a very real way, Thorin is partially to blame. 
• Thranduil - As king of the forest elves (from whom Thorin and company escape earlier in their journey) and ally to the men of Laketown, Thranduil has plenty of motive to come against Thorin.  He also mentions something about 'reclaiming something that is mine' - could this be reference to the white gems he mentioned in An Unexpected Journey? Either way, he is definitely bringing an army of elven archers with him and they look ready to fight. 
• Azog the Defiler (a.k.a. "The Pale Orc") - Both personally and historically, Azog represents an arch nemesis for Thorin.  Azog and his legions not only wreaked significant destruction on Thorin's people in An Unexpected Journey but he also beheaded Thorin's grandfather Thror as the first step in wiping out the line of Durin.  It seems only fitting that Azog will lead Sauron's army against Thorin's newly reclaimed kingdom. Their inevitable showdown should be epic!
• While not his enemies, Bilbo and the rest of the dwarves appear to be concerned about Thorin and are questioning his motives.  This is a stark contrast to the attitude of Thorin's comrades earlier in the quest, one of whom praised Thorin by saying, "There is one I could follow. There is one I could call King."
• We will see Galadriel, Elrond and Saruman come to the free the captive Gandalf from the Dark Lord Sauron.  What an epic group of individuals to bring together!  
• Thranduil and Tauriel (captain of the elven guard played by Evangeline Lily) appear to have had a falling out as Thranduil draws his sword against her. 
• Bolg, son of Azog the Defiler and a frightening creature in his own right, will face-off against Legolas in what will undoubtedly be a harrowing clash of titans.

Overall, I found the trailer emotionally driven, in no small part due to Howard Shore's terrific score, but epic in scope - given the legions of forces from all races charging toward each other for one great and terrible battle.  I'm really excited for the film. All that is left to do is decide whether to see The Hobbit Marathon or the midnight showing...decision, decisions. When and/or how are you planning to see the final chapter of Middle-earth unfold?  Let me know in the comments section below. Thanks!

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies Teaser Trailer is FINALLY Out!

It was just recently that I was complaining to my wife, "When are we finally going to get a trailer for "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies?"  And here it is. Enjoy!!



First Impressions: 

• Those who have seen "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" will recognize the "Edge of Night," sung by Billy Boyd (Pippin).  The choice to have this memorable song from the original trilogy echo as a haunting backdrop to the images in the trailer helps to evoke something of the emotion that we can expect to experience in the final chapter. This installment, like "The Return of the King" before it, will undoubtedly be the darkest and most intense of the trilogy. 
• Azog the Defiler, the pale orc with whom Thorin Oakenshield went toe to toe in "An Unexpected Journey," will return - and he is bringing legions of orcs with him (Army 1 of 5).
• Bard the Bowman (Luke Evans) and Thorin (Richard Armitage), with their respective groups (Armies 2 & 3), seem to have had a falling out since the "The Desolation of Smaug" - probably due in part to the dragon we see setting fire to Laketown.  
• On that note, Smaug the Terrible (voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch) will be making a flamethrower of a return. 
• It appears that Galadriel intends to fulfill the promise she made to Gandalf in "An Unexpected Journey" that 'should he ever need her, she would come.'  I'm excited to see what her role will be since she is not a part of the original "Hobbit" novel. I am confident that she won't be out of place, though, since she is a key part of the Middle-earth and is mentioned in the supplemental appendices created by J.R.R. Tolkien. 
• Any idea what Armies 4 & 5 are?  There will certainly be some epic battles up ahead and I can't wait to see how it all plays out!